Can Somebody Put Me Onto Some Good Jazz Music?

[((ReFleX))]

i have no idea where to start...i know nothing about all the great jazz music & jazz musicians. i'm talkin about that real jazz music...the jazz your grandparents listen to.

[Copper Scroll]

There's so many different types of jazz....

What type of sound do you expect yourself to like?

If you expect you'll like mellow acoustic jazz, definitely get Miles Davis' Kind of Blue. It's at the top of most people's list for greatest jazz record ever. It's not my favorite Miles album, but it's one of my favorites.

After Kind of Blue, you can start branching out to other Miles albums (like Milestones or My Funny Valentine) or albums by his sidemen (like John Coltrane's Giant Steps or Cannonball Adderley's Somethin' Else or Bill Evans' Waltz for Debby).

If you expect you'd like something more energetic but still acoustic, try Miles Smiles (my favorite Miles album). That album was recorded by the greatest jazz ensemble ever (Miles, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Tony Williams, and Ron Carter), so you can't go wrong with any of their albums: ESP, Nefertiti, Miles In the Sky and Sorcerer (in that order).

Also, definitely get John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, which has my vote for greatest jazz album ever. It is a highly energetic and adventurous recording--pretty free form at points. If you find you really did the "free" or "avant garde" jazz after Love Supreme, try John Coltrane Quartet Plays or some Ornette Coleman recordings from the 60s and branch out. My Favorite Things is another great Coltrane record.

Bebop is very (sometimes too) energetic--fast-paced with not a whole lot going on rhythmically--but you might like that too. Try Charlie Parker's Yardbird Suite (a real nice compilation) and then branch out to some old Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, or Max Roach. A lot of the mainstream "post-bop" and "hard bop" is kinda boring to me, but I can't front on Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers; a lot of their stuff from the 60s is too good. Art Blakey records will expose you to a lot of great players you might like. Look at the personnel list on his records and branch out.

I like post-bop with a twist--something that makes it sound a little wierd. For that Charles Mingus (Ah Um) and Thelonious Monk (Brilliant Corners or With John Coltrane) are the way to go. Eric Dolphy's Out to Lunch is a real interesting record. I didn't understand it at all when I first got it, but after listening to other avant garde albums (like Dave Holland's Conference of the Birds and Andrew Hill's Point of Departure) and other Dolphy recordings (like his work with Coltrane and Mingus), it has to be one of my favorites now. Give Out to Lunch a try. It's a real challenging record.

If all of the above is too much, try "cool" West Coast jazz, like Chet Baker. I'm not really into that stuff though. If you think you might like orchestral jazz, try Miles Davis' Porgy & Bess, his best collab with arranger Gil Evans imo.

If you like funk, some funky fusion albums to start with might be Herbie Hancock's Head Hunters or Thrust (tame) or Sextant (wild).
Try Miles Davis' Live Evil (wilder than wild) or Cellar Door Sessions (6-disc box set; source material for Live Evil). To me, Cellar Door is better. I like the music without the edits. Freddie Hubbard's Red Clay is real funky, and Grant Green's 70s material (like Alive!) is funk-oriented too.

If you already like hard rock, try the more rock-oriented fusion like Mahavishnu Orchestra's Inner Mounting Flame and Birds of Fire
and Tony Williams Lifetime's Emergency! and Miles Davis' Tribute to Jack Johnson and *****es Brew. (Incidently, these are all foundational fusion albums and guitarist John McLaughlin plays on all of them.)

If you think you might like electric jazz but something more mellow, try Miles Davis' In a Silent Way or Filles De Kilimanjaro.

Well, that's my list--heavy on Miles Davis, but--hey--dude tried any and everything over the course of his 40-something-year-long career.

[Copper Scroll]

Some other classic albums I didn't mention above:

Herbie Hancock - Maiden Voyage (beautiful; acoustic)
Charles Lloyd - Forest Flower (same here; recorded live)
Chick Corea - Now He Sings, Now He Sobs (the greatest piano trio album I've heard; never gets boring)
Sun Ra - Atlantis (talk about avant garde; Sun Ra was on some other...)
Wayne Shorter - Speak No Evil (acoustic)
Miles Davis - Round About Midnight (one of his and jazz's greatest bands--with Coltrane)

[((ReFleX))]

There's so many different types of jazz....
What type of sound do you expect yourself to like?
If you expect you'll like mellow acoustic jazz, definitely get Miles Davis' Kind of Blue. It's at the top of most people's list for greatest jazz record ever. It's not my favorite Miles album, but it's one of my favorites.
After Kind of Blue, you can start branching out to other Miles albums (like Milestones or My Funny Valentine) or albums by his sidemen (like John Coltrane's Giant Steps or Cannonball Adderley's Somethin' Else or Bill Evans' Waltz for Debby).
If you expect you'd like something more energetic but still acoustic, try Miles Smiles (my favorite Miles album). That album was recorded by the greatest jazz ensemble ever (Miles, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Tony Williams, and Ron Carter), so you can't go wrong with any of their albums: ESP, Nefertiti, Miles In the Sky and Sorcerer (in that order).
Also, definitely get John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, which has my vote for greatest jazz album ever. It is a highly energetic and adventurous recording--pretty free form at points. If you find you really did the "free" or "avant garde" jazz after Love Supreme, try John Coltrane Quartet Plays or some Ornette Coleman recordings from the 60s and branch out. My Favorite Things is another great Coltrane record.
Bebop is very (sometimes too) energetic--fast-paced with not a whole lot going on rhythmically--but you might like that too. Try Charlie Parker's Yardbird Suite (a real nice compilation) and then branch out to some old Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, or Max Roach. A lot of the mainstream "post-bop" and "hard bop" is kinda boring to me, but I can't front on Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers; a lot of their stuff from the 60s is too good. Art Blakey records will expose you to a lot of great players you might like. Look at the personnel list on his records and branch out.
I like post-bop with a twist--something that makes it sound a little wierd. For that Charles Mingus (Ah Um) and Thelonious Monk (Brilliant Corners or With John Coltrane) are the way to go. Eric Dolphy's Out to Lunch is a real interesting record. I didn't understand it at all when I first got it, but after listening to other avant garde albums (like Dave Holland's Conference of the Birds and Andrew Hill's Point of Departure) and other Dolphy recordings (like his work with Coltrane and Mingus), it has to be one of my favorites now. Give Out to Lunch a try. It's a real challenging record.
If all of the above is too much, try "cool" West Coast jazz, like Chet Baker. I'm not really into that stuff though. If you think you might like orchestral jazz, try Miles Davis' Porgy & Bess, his best collab with arranger Gil Evans imo.
If you like funk, some funky fusion albums to start with might be Herbie Hancock's Head Hunters or Thrust (tame) or Sextant (wild).
Try Miles Davis' Live Evil (wilder than wild) or Cellar Door Sessions (6-disc box set; source material for Live Evil). To me, Cellar Door is better. I like the music without the edits. Freddie Hubbard's Red Clay is real funky, and Grant Green's 70s material (like Alive!) is funk-oriented too.
If you already like hard rock, try the more rock-oriented fusion like Mahavishnu Orchestra's Inner Mounting Flame and Birds of Fire
and Tony Williams Lifetime's Emergency! and Miles Davis' Tribute to Jack Johnson and *****es Brew. (Incidently, these are all foundational fusion albums and guitarist John McLaughlin plays on all of them.)
If you think you might like electric jazz but something more mellow, try Miles Davis' In a Silent Way or Filles De Kilimanjaro.
Well, that's my list--heavy on Miles Davis, but--hey--dude tried any and everything over the course of his 40-something-year-long career.

DAMN:ohmy:...major props on this $hit dawg. but yeah, i'm lookin for more of that mellow laid back $hit. the type of $hit that you can kick back & relax to. so i guess i'll prolly check out that "in a slient way" & "Filles De Kilimanjaro". but i'll most likely check out all that $hit eventually...especially all of miles davis' $hit. i know he's like the fukkin man when it comes to jazz, so i been wantin check out some of his music...i just never knew where to start, so this was a really big help to me. good lookin homie..appreciate it. peace.

[((ReFleX))]

Some other classic albums I didn't mention above:

Herbie Hancock - Maiden Voyage (beautiful; acoustic)
Charles Lloyd - Forest Flower (same here; recorded live)
Chick Corea - Now He Sings, Now He Sobs (the greatest piano trio album I've heard; never gets boring)
Sun Ra - Atlantis (talk about avant garde; Sun Ra was on some other...)
Wayne Shorter - Speak No Evil (acoustic)
Miles Davis - Round About Midnight (one of his and jazz's greatest bands--with Coltrane)
props...im'a write all these down. definitely love the piano, so i gotta check out that "now he sings, now he sobs" joint. good looks

[Copper Scroll]

DAMN:ohmy:...major props on this $hit dawg. but yeah, i'm lookin for more of that mellow laid back $hit. the type of $hit that you can kick back & relax to. so i guess i'll prolly check out that "in a slient way" & "Filles De Kilimanjaro". but i'll most likely check out all that $hit eventually...especially all of miles davis' $hit. i know he's like the fukkin man when it comes to jazz, so i been wantin check out some of his music...i just never knew where to start, so this was a really big help to me. good lookin homie..appreciate it. peace.
For mellow, don't forget Kind of Blue. Definitely start there for something mellow. In a Silent Way is mellow but very free form and spacey. Kind of Blue should be your thing--its more "classic".

[((ReFleX))]

For mellow, don't forget Kind of Blue. Definitely start there for something mellow. In a Silent Way is mellow but very free form and spacey. Kind of Blue should be your thing--its more "classic".
coo, coo. i'll check that out first then. i'm more a classic type dude..not really feelin the experimental $hit. good lookin

[Black N Proud]

i have no idea where to start...i know nothing about all the great jazz music & jazz musicians. i'm talkin about that real jazz music...the jazz your grandparents listen to.
YOU NEED this album; Miles Davis', On The Corner. :yes:

[Copper Scroll]

YOU NEED this album; Miles Davis', On The Corner. :yes:
That one's kinda crazy. Real exotic.

I think it's okay. I just wish there was a little more diversity on it.

[((ReFleX))]

YOU NEED this album; Miles Davis', On The Corner. :yes:
good looks..i'll check it out.


btw, that "kind of blue" album is amazing. so is "a love supreme"

[BeantownBaller666]

Props on this great thread, I've heard a couple of these records, with my favorite things probably being my favorite album, but A Love Supreme the song being my favorite of them all, and I will def check for some of this other stuff that has been mentioned

[Tetris v2.0]

props on the recommendations. Im gonna check a lot of those :smoker:

[Copper Scroll]

Just copped Pharoah Sanders' Impulse Story compilation. Only four tracks, but it's alright (except for the extended period of chaos at the end of "The Creator Has a Master Plan"). Sanders' honks and squeaks are better than Coltrane's, I think.

[Walk Wit Me]

linkage peoples

[Copper Scroll]

If you expect you'd like something more energetic but still acoustic, try Miles Smiles (my favorite Miles album). That album was recorded by the greatest jazz ensemble ever (Miles, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Tony Williams, and Ron Carter), so you can't go wrong with any of their albums: ESP, Nefertiti, Miles In the Sky and Sorcerer (in that order).
Watch the greatest band of all time (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSVDN_D7lXo). And listen! Herbie Hancock's solo is particularly brilliant here. And the drums! Tony Williams is without a doubt the greatest drummer of any genre. I just wish Ron Carter's bass was more audible here.

(The studio version of "Footprints" appears on Miles Smiles.)

[J-Uhuru]

if it is more mellow jazz that u r looking for try this

old school:

Miles Davis: kind of blue
Charles Mingus: goodbye porkpie hat (i think)
duke ellington: any of his ballad type songs would do
Ron Carter

70's-80's fusion type artists

George Benson - Breezin (you will not be sorry for picking up this album)
Grover Washington, Jr
Stanley Clarke - If this bass could only talk, live at the greek.
Najee - Tokyo Blue (real smooth)
Marcus Miller

also dont sleep on Roy Hargrove (family), (habana)

[Copper Scroll]

I'm really feeling flutist/multi-clarinetist/multi-saxophonist Eric Dolphy right now. Out To Lunch is probably the most played album on my ipod. After d/ling Outward Bound, Out There, Far Cry, and Charles Mingus' Town Hall Concert, I looked up some info on him. Some notes:

During his time, Dolphy was a controversial figure in jazz. Miles Davis and many in the jazz establishment, though respectful of Dolphy's technical abilities, greatly disliked his music. Meanwhile, Charles Mingus and (close Davis associate) John Coltrane were huge Dolphy enthusiasts. Coltrane found a unique kinship with Dolphy and partnered with him on several recordings (like the legendary Live at the Village Vanguard (1961), Africa/Brass [a very unique item in Coltrane's catalog], and the highly underrated Ole Coltrane). Dolphy was also Mingus' favorite sideman.

Though Dolphy's music is unconventional on a number of levels (odd but brilliant choices in instrumentation, the unique harmonic structure of his compositions and solos, etc.), his music never approaches the chaos often associated with "free jazz" or "outside playing". The music is often atonal and dissonant, but it works strictly within the bounds of its own logic--and therefore makes sense.

His fast becoming one of my top 5 favorite jazzers.

[sexydeltagirl]

I got some Betty Carter, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Carmen McRae if you are interested...oh and some Lalah Hathaway and Joe Sample....

[Copper Scroll]

Coltrane found a unique kinship with Dolphy and partnered with him on several recordings...

This is dope. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUzFbT5JT1M)

[Copper Scroll]

I just bought Inside Out by Keith Jarrett's "Standards" trio (with Gary Peacock and Jack Dejohnette). It's real nice. Though this trio is best known for their interpretation of classic jazz standards (hence the name), they play and improvise freely on this album. (In the liner notes, Jarrett explains how he decided that the band would take this approach at gigs whenever standard tunes failed to work at sound check.) Jarrett's got to be at least one of the best at coming up with gorgeous melodies out of thin air. Having worked with him for like 20 years, Peacock and Dejohnette complement him perfectly. At times, mellow and spacious, and at other times, aggressive and intense--great great album. Fresh.

[Paul Mooney]

two words: Money Jungle


Duke, Mingus and Roach....close thread

[Copper Scroll]

I'm really feeling flutist/multi-clarinetist/multi-saxophonist Eric Dolphy right now.
My temporary fascination/fixation has seemed to move from Eric Dolphy to Andrew Hill. It was an easy transition, given how similar these two artists are in sensibility--Dolphy on reeds and Hill on piano.

Overall, Dolphy was probably a far more gifted player, but Hill, I think, is a more gifted composer. Hill's compositions are beautiful but elliptical and elusive--dark, exotic, and sometimes really sad.

And he's still doing his thing. He probably was most prolific during the 60s, but he is at the top of his game right now. His past two albums are absolute winners (Dusk and Time Lines).

My favorite album of Hill's remains Point of Departure, though (which features Dolphy--one of the last albums Dolphy recorded).

Fans of Thelonious Monk should appreciate Hill's playing and compositions. I'd bet Monk is his main influence, but Hill also adapts the flexibility of Art Tatum and with the soft edges of, say, Bill Evans.

I need to go back and cop as many of his Blue Note recordings from the 60s as I can get....

[Andre2999]

Thelonious Monk? Discuss.

[Copper Scroll]

Thelonious Monk? Discuss.
A distinct and original and quirky voice on piano... a distinct and original and quirky composer... I think Monk is great. To my ears, he made the most interesting jazz of the 50s. He was both a forerunner to "the avant garde" and highly influential in the mainstream having written several of its standards... so his impact on modern jazz is incalculable.

video: 'Round Midnight (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RBfVqKjM7s)--maybe his best known tune

[anti white movement]

i heard Coltrane's Giants steps, and I must say that this is the Jazz album that I like the most.

I like Very fast, technical and aggressive music.
Would bebop jazz be right up my alley?

[Copper Scroll]

i heard Coltrane's Giants steps, and I must say that this is the Jazz album that I like the most.
I like Very fast, technical and aggressive music.
Would bebop jazz be right up my alley?
Yeah, Giant Steps is great. If you like Giant Steps, you'll probably like Blue Train (blues-infused "hard bop") and My Favorite Things ("modal" jazz not unlike Kind of Blue) too. Giant Steps is one of the more "bop" of Coltrane's albums--it's intense and it centers on Trane's solos and his brilliant sense of harmonic progression.

For more bop, I would move immediately onto Charlie Parker's Yardbird Suite compilation. It goes without saying that Bird's solos are incredible.

My favorite Coltrane joint, though, still has to be the popular choice--A Love Supreme. It seems to bring together the elements of modal, bop, and free jazz into a perfectly cohesive whole. It bears the mark of divine intervention, for real. There's nothing like it.

[anti white movement]

Yeah, Giant Steps is great. If you like Giant Steps, you'll probably like Blue Train (blues-infused "hard bop") and My Favorite Things ("modal" jazz not unlike Kind of Blue) too. Giant Steps is one of the more "bop" of Coltrane's albums--it's intense and it centers on Trane's solos and his brilliant sense of harmonic progression.
For more bop, I would move immediately onto Charlie Parker's Yardbird Suite compilation. It goes without saying that Bird's solos are incredible.
My favorite Coltrane joint, though, still has to be the popular choice--A Love Supreme. It seems to bring together the elements of modal, bop, and free jazz into a perfectly cohesive whole. It bears the mark of divine intervention, for real. There's nothing like it.


wow... i'm heading out to the record store today.. thanks man!

[5Poets1Mic]

anything wes montgomery!

[redbull]

links to some of these albums would be greatly appreciated

[Copper Scroll]

links to some of these albums would be greatly appreciated
I compiled some favorites into a playlist for my ipod. It's almost four hours long.

Here it is. (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=QVZIWIA3) (link)

[Copper Scroll]

Tracklist for the link above:

1. 'Round Midnight - Miles Davis, 1956
2. Bemsha Swing - Thelonious Monk, 1956
3. Blue In Green - Miles Davis, 1959
4. Countdown - John Coltrane, 1959
5. Lonely Woman - Ornette Coleman, 1959
6. Gunslinging Bird (If Charlie Parker Were a Gunslinger, There'd Be a Whole Lot of Dead Copy Cats) - Charles Mingus, 1959
7. Folk Forms No. 1 - Charles Mingus, 1960
8. Free Form - Donald Byrd, 1961
9. Afro Blue - John Coltrane, 1963
10. Free For All - Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers, 1964
11. Straight Up and Down - Eric Dolphy, 1964
12. New Monastery - Andrew Hill, 1964
13. Sun Ship - John Coltrane, 1965
14. Maiden Voyage - Herbie Hancock, 1965
15. East of the Sun - Charles Lloyd, 1966
16. Masqualero - Miles Davis, 1967
17. Windows - Chick Corea, 1968
18. Directions - Miles Davis, 1968
19. Water Babies - Wayne Shorter, 1969
20. Red Clay - Freddie Hubbard, 1970
21. Sivad / Honky Tonk - Miles Davis, 1970
22. The Moors - Weather Report, 1971
23. Conference of the Birds - David Holland, 1972
24. Chameleon - Herbie Hancock, 1973
25. Bright Size Life - Pat Metheny, 1975

[Andre2999]

do you have the songs? the link was just an m3u, weouldn't do anything for me.

[Copper Scroll]

Ach! I gotta do this over. Hitting the road for now. I do it over this weekend. Peace.

[guilty]

Copper Scroll,

that's a hell lot of knowledge right there, good looking out. My fav hip hop artists, say ATCQ, Pete Rock, Gangstarr are all heavily jazz influenced. That's why I got hooked up.

But seems u overlooked one important album from Miles Davis, B itches Brew. Now lemme hear yout take on it...

[Copper Scroll]

Copper Scroll,
that's a hell lot of knowledge right there, good looking out. My fav hip hop artists, say ATCQ, Pete Rock, Gangstarr are all heavily jazz influenced. That's why I got hooked up.
But seems u overlooked one important album from Miles Davis, B itches Brew. Now lemme hear yout take on it...
Yeah, I did mention it in post #2 on this thread, but it got censored. (And I mentioned it in the Miles Davis thread I started here (http://forums.sohh.com/showthread.php?t=778066).)

I agree that Biitches Brew is a very important album--maybe more important an album than it is a great album. Don't get me wrong--I love it, but I can't say that I love it more than maybe another 15 or so Miles Davis albums that I love. It is a pivotal piece though--right next to In A Silent Way in helping kick off fusion. I like listening to these two back to back. Silent Way seems to flow right into Brew. It's as if Silent Way was erasing everything Miles was expected to do (modern jazz) and left a blank slate. Biitches Brew slowly paints new and exotic colors and forms on that blank slate and Miles seems to add on to this new artform as the early 70s progress.

The sound on that album is real interesting--chugging guitars; slithering and creeping bass clarinet; rhythms that seem to walk the line between rock and jazz; mad keyboards offering soft colors in the back; and some of Miles' most intense blowing up front. (It's interesting that most of the players on this album ended up becoming major figures in the new jazz-rock/funk fusion music--Wayne Shorter and Josef Zawinul [of Weather Report]; John McLaughlin [of Lifetime and Mahavishnu Orchestra]; Bennie Maupin [of Herbie Hancock's Mwandishi and Headhunters bands]; Chick Corea [of Return to Forever]; Lenny White. And though they are not really known for their "fusion" work, Dave Holland and Jack Dejohnette are two of the biggest names in jazz today.)

The thing I don't like about its sound is its muckiness. I guess the music was too thick for the way they went about recording it. I don't know. I just find that the bassline (Dave Holland) often gets lost in the mix. I think Holland was great for "quintet" work, but his playing was too "free" for the new sound Miles was working on. His bass is much more prominent and enjoyable on the Fillmore albums (Black Beauty, At Fillmore, It's About That Time). Have you heard those? Brew fans should like them, though they don't have textural touches like guitar or clarinet and the rhythm section plays much more freely.

Chick Corea commented once that he, Jack, and Dave pretty much decided to play as freely as Miles would allow at live shows. They knew that Miles did not have much of an appreciation for "free jazz" and expected Miles to stifle them, but he never did--so they played freer and freer, edging ever-closer to loud, electric chaos. Eventually, though, Miles more-or-less asked Dave to calm down and stick to a groove. Dave took this as his cue to leave Miles. Chick left around the same time. (They formed a band called Circle, whose records are really hard to find. I'm trying to get my copy of Paris Concert.)

What about Tribute to Jack Johnson or Live-Evil? A new (funkier) bass-player there, Michael Henderson--a much better fit for Miles' new electric sound imo. Highly recommended too.

[Copper Scroll]

Other recommendations for B itches Brew fans:

Herbie Hancock - Mwandishi
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Birds of Fire
Wayne Shorter - Super Nova
Miles Davis - Big Fun
Joe McPhee - Nation Time

[guilty]

Damn, call u Miles Davis Guru!:yes:

Some people told me that Jazz is SUPPOSED to be a quiet or serene music, but from what I feel, it's not the case. Jazz can be really energetic and exciting, it can absorb your soul if you have well-trained ears. U feel me?

For real though, I'm just a layman, ain't touched most of these classics yet. What I messed are some legends' pop works, some jazz-rap stuff. My latest this kind of rotation is Stanley Clark. He seems a cool dude. Out of all them instruments, i love bass the most. Your comments on him?

[Copper Scroll]

Damn, call u Miles Davis Guru!:yes:
Some people told me that Jazz is SUPPOSED to be a quiet or serene music, but from what I feel, it's not the case. Jazz can be really energetic and exciting, it can absorb your soul if you have well-trained ears. U feel me?
For real though, I'm just a layman, ain't touched most of these classics yet. What I messed are some legends' pop works, some jazz-rap stuff. My latest this kind of rotation is Stanley Clark. He seems a cool dude. Out of all them instruments, i love bass the most. Your comments on him?
I could go on forever about Miles.

I don't know exactly how jazz got the stereotype for being mellow and soft. Miles, one of jazz's most popular figures, is known for his "cool" and lyrical style on trumpet--but one of his biggest sellers (Biitches Brew) is not very quiet or serene at all. Coltrane played gorgeous ballads, but he is most known for really long and intense solos, and he played some of the wildest free jazz of his time. Charlie Parker, maybe the biggest influence on modern jazz, was often criticized during his time because his music was too energetic and "nervous." Maybe jazz got the "mellow" rap because, most recently, a bastardized form of instrumental pop has been marketed as "smooth jazz" for "adults" that might be turned off by the current pop scene. Overall, though, I think pop audiences favor ballads in jazz to the more energetic stuff. I think they're sadly missing out.

I'm not all that familiar with Stanley Clarke's work. I only have a few tracks by him: "School Days" (a bland fusion record I wouldn't recommend) and some stuff he did for a movie in the 90s (which is much more enjoyable). And I have some of his work with Return to Forever, a fusion band led by Chick Corea. He has a great presense there on bass--popping strings and maintaining the groove....

[TuneOut]

I'd say to shut your eyes and listen to some Duke Ellington befroe anything else.